A Fatal Mistake
by Finbarr Galedeep
Summary: A boy enters the Redwall world yes I know people do this all the time His evil brother follows him once, and war may break out... rated for violence and wars please R and R!
1. Chapter 1

**A/N: This story is going to be about a human coming to the Redwall world (yes I know people do this all the time), and he will have the ability to take things from our world into the Redwall world. He also has an evil brother. This story takes place after anything Brian Jacques has already written or plans to write in the future. This is going to be a very short chapter. It is more of an introduction or prologue than an actual chapter. (will accept title suggestions) This story is rated "T" just to be safe. (please make any corrections if you see them)**

**Disclaimer: Redwall and all the books are © Brian Jacques.**

* * *

Mark sat on the couch in his living room, reading a copy of _High Rhulain_, by Brian Jacques. He was 13 years old. His build was average and he was of normal height. He had light brown hair. He was an avid reader and Redwall fan. 

"Good job, Tiria! I knew you could defeat that Riggu Felis!" exclaimed Mark. "Redwall is so cool. I wish it was real. That would be so awesome. I would help all the woodland creatures defeat the vermin. I would be an unstoppable warrior. Of course, I would be the gentlest of all towards the Abbeybabes. Oh well, it's no use wishing and dreaming if it can't happen.

* * *

In Redwall, a young squirrel named Twighopper stopped reading her history book for a moment. 

"Wow," she thought. "The High Rhulain was such a brave warrior, and she was only barely older than me. I wonder if I could do great things if suddenly we needed a hero."

She thought on this for quite a while, for she had a large imagination. Then she came up with a random thought.

"I wonder if there are other worlds out there. If there are, I sure would like to meet a creature from that world…"


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N This is the second chapter. As you can see it is longer than the last chapter. I hope you like it! please review**

**Disclaimer: Redwall and everything in it is ©Brian Jacques**

As Mark continued reading _High Rhulain_, His brother, David, came into the room.

"Are you still reading those gay mouse books?" sneered David. " You need to be introduced to a _real_ war, not those animals shooting arrows and hitting each other with swords. _Modern_ warfare is what it's all about. If you charged willy-nilly into the battle, you wouldn't last half a second. If I had just one tank, I could destroy an entire army of your fake _woodland creatures_."

"You idiot, these books are _medieval_. Of course you could kill them with a tank, but if you just had a sword, _you _wouldn't last half a second. Go back and play your Battlefield 2 game, or are you tired of being blasted into oblivion every 10 seconds?" taunted Mark.

"HEY! SHUT UP! I could whoop your butt any day!"

"I don't care if you could whoop me, but anybody else who plays could kick you fat behind any day of the week."

"Well… uh… SHUT UP!" David stomped off in a huff.

When David was gone, Mark thought, "I really hate him sometimes, but there's nothing I can do. He is bigger, older, and stronger than me. He also was in the army for two years. He still has connections in the army. If he wanted to, he could get almost any weapon he wanted. Oh well, it's best just to ignore him. Back to my reading now."

Mark continued reading for the next half-hour. When he had finished _High Rhulain_, he felt content. Well, _almost_ content.

"I _so _wish Redwall was real. I would give _anything_ to be in Redwall."

Mark thought about Redwall for the rest of the day. When he went to bed that night, he was still thinking about Redwall. As he fell asleep, he had a very strange dream. In the dream, he saw a hazy figure. Mark squinted to look at the figure, but he still could not make it out. Then he heard a voice. It was very comfortable, but it seemed almost as if it was inside of his head. Somehow he knew the voice came from the hazy figure. The voice was so comforting that Mark knew he should listen.

"Mark, listen to me," said the figure. "You will get your wish. You will be able to go to Redwall. I will not tell you how you will get here, because it will come as a surprise. But, I must warn you, tell no one at all. There will be great fighting and trouble in Mossflower if the wrong people enter our world. Guard your secret with care…"

As the voice began to fade, Mark asked, or rather thought, a question.

"Who are you?"

Just as Mark asked his question, the figure split into two figures, and they became much clearer. Mark noticed that they were to strong-looking mice. The first figure answered:

"I am Martin; this is Matthias. Guard our land as best you can."

Mark slept on for a few moments, and then woke up.

"That's strange. I remember having a dream, but I can't remember a thing. Oh well." He went right back to sleep.

* * *

In Mossflower, Twighopper and her friends were begging Father Abbot Maximus to let them go outside of the Abbey walls and into the woods. Abbot Maximus completely fit his name. He was nearly a head taller than other mice, and much broader in the shoulders. Despite his size, he had a soft spot for Dibbuns and young creatures. Twighopper and her friends were beginning to win Abbot Maximus over. 

"Please let us go!" begged Twighopper.

"I don't know, it can be dangerous out there," replied Abbot Maximus, even though he already knew he would allow the youngsters to go.

"Don't worry," replied Twighopper's friend Riverfisher, a young but burly otter, "I can take care of these two rascals."

"I don't know, Meadowgrass can be quite ornery at times." Father Abbot made a mental note that Riverfisher was a good candidate to be the next Skipper of Otters.

Meadowgrass fluttered her long eyelashes and voiced her plea to Father Abbot. "Please let us go, Father Abbot. If you don't, I might have to cry." She sat down on the Abbey lawn and feigned sadness and started rubbing her eyes with her paws.

"All right, you've convinced me. I'll let you go, but don't stray too far and be back in time for the evening meal. Be sure to take a haversack full of food so you don't get hungry. Tell Friar Mitch that I told him to pack you all kinds of goodies for you expedition.

"Yay! Thank you Father Abbot!" The three friends cried in unison as they ran to find Friar Mitch.

"Those are the future of Redwall Abbey. They will grow up to become respectable Abbey elders. All they need is a little bit more responsibility," thought Abbot Maximus.

As the Father Abbot continued to think about his beloved Abbey and its future. He wandered up onto the wall just north of the main gate. To the west, he saw the plains, and to the east, past the Abbey, he saw seemingly endless expanses of woodland.

"Your Abbey sure is a wonderful place, isn't it, Maximus."

Abbot Maximus looked around for the speaker and found his long-time friend Methuselah. He was named after the Methuselah who helped Matthias to find the sword of Martin the Warrior. The current Methuselah was very dedicated in his role as Abbey Recorder and Librarian. He studied the history of Redwall, especially the lives and adventures of Martin the Warrior and Matthias. Nobeast knew more about Redwall's history than Methuselah.

"Yes it is, Methuselah. It seems like it has been around since the beginning of time, yet it still stands strong. It is like a symbol for all that is good and a defiance against all evil. I love coming up here around sunset. It seems like I can see everything from up here: The plains, the sunset, the forest. Sometimes I imagine myself flying all over the land, and I see many wonderful things. But, nothing satisfies me as much as this Abbey. I can never wait until I fly home and see these dusty pink walls."

"I know exactly how you feel. When I was younger, I would often come up here and do that exact same thing," replied Methuselah.

" Was that when you were Father Abbot? I remember when you were the Abbot. You were so kind to all the young ones, and we had the grandest feasts!" exclaimed Maximus.

"Yes, I could get a little carried away with my feasts sometimes. I love a good feast just as much as the next Redwaller. Those were the days. Not to say anything bad about your feasts. Do you remember the midwinter feast in the Winter of the Frozen Rose?" queried Methuselah.

"Ah, do I ever! There was that family of hares, the Mimps, and all of their 11 leverets, and we still had leftovers for three days! It was one of the best feasts I remember. But Methuselah, I can see that you love this Abbey as much as I do. Why did you had your position over to me?"

"Oh, I just started to get old. To tell the truth, being Father Abbot required just a little bit too much responsibility," confessed Methuselah. "Besides, I love books, I always have, and I always will."

As the two long-time friends continued reminiscing about the "good old days," Twighopper, Riverfisher, and Meadowgrass started on their outing in Mossflower woods laden with crabapple tarts and plum cakes.

"Where should we go this time?" asked Twighopper.

Riverfisher replied, "I say that we should head over to the River Moss. I know where a good patch of blackberries is, and I could take a swim and maybe do a bit of fishing, matey."

"Oh, be quiet," Meadowgrass replied playfully. "We all know that you just want to show off. Everybody already knows you're the best swimmer and fisher besides the Skipper."

"Okay, Meadowgrass. Where do you want to go?" in inquired Twighopper.

" I found this place that has wild pears for me to pick, because you know how much I love pears, great tall trees for you to climb, Twighopper, and a stream for Riverfisher to swim in. There, I compromised all of our wishes. Let's go."

Thethree friends headed off. As they made their way towards Meadowgrass's spot, Twighopper started a conversation.

"Do you think there are any other worlds out there?" she asked.

"I don't know, mate," replied Riverfisher. "This world is big enough for me,"

"That is an interesting idea," said Meadowgrass, "but I don't think that it is possible."

"Why not?" questioned Twighopper. "What about all the stars? It's pretty big out there. It seems like it could happen. If there's the sun, the moon, and the stars out there, why can't there be other worlds."

"Get your head out of the clouds, or rather, the stars. _This _world is too big for us to comprehend. Why should we even try to think about other worlds? Even if there are other worlds, how could we get to them? Trust me, you'll only be disappointed when you find out it's not possible," lectured Meadowgrass.

"Well, okay. It would be cool if there were other worlds, though. Well, we're here. I'm going to go climb that big tree over there."

The three friends had a great time. Riverfisher swam and did some acrobatics to show off. He even caught a few fish. Meadowgrass ate a couple pears and packed away some more, thinking that Friar Mitch might bake a batch of apple and pear flans. Twighopper climbed a tree and jumbed from tree to tree with the greatest of ease. That was why she was called Twighopper. Even though she had a great time, she still could not get the idea of other worlds out of her head. After a few hours, the friends headed back. The topic of other worlds did not come up. The sun was starting to set, so the three friends hurried. They did not want to miss Friar Mitch's leek and mushroom pasties.

* * *

When Mark woke up in the morning, he had no recollection of his dream at all. After eating breakfast, he sat down to read _High Rhulain_ again. His brother David walked into the room, shook his head, and walked off.

Mark thought, "It's a nice day outside. I'll go find a tree in the woods and read there. That way I'll be away from David."

Mark went outside and found a tree suitable to his liking. He climbed about seven feet up and settled down to read. After reading for about an hour, he heard someone coming.

"Hey, loser!" cried a voice from the woods.

"What do you want," replied Mark in an annoyed voice.

Mark's brother David came out from behind a tree and said, "How can you read so much and actually like it. I should take your book away from you. _Then_ what would you do?"

David ran up to the tree, scaled the trunk, and grabbed _High Rhulain_. Mark held on, but David was stronger. David pulled the book from Mark's hand, but David overbalanced from the pull and started to fall over. He grabbed Mark in an attempt to fall over, and Mark fell out of the tree. David looked down and saw that Mark had landed on his head.

"Mark?" David asked fearfully. Mark did not move or reply.

As the world started to go black, Mark heard David say:

"Oh snap, I'm in trouble now. I can't tell anyone."


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N: Thanks for the reviews Xenosagi and daevilBEAN.**

**I know there will most likely be a question about the passage of time between the worlds. The passage of time between the human world and the Redwall world will be similar to the Chronicles of Narnia. One hour in the Redwall world will equal approximately two minutes in the human world, but when the humans are in their world, Redwall time will pass about twenty minutes for every hour on Earth.**

**Also, about the size ratio between humans and woodland creatures. There are two ways you could look at it: Either the woodland creatures are human-sized, or everything from the human world has been downsized to fit the Redwall world. Please R&R! I hope you like it.**

**It will most likely be a week or two until I update. I apologize in advance for your wait.**

**Disclaimer: Redwall and everything involved with it is ©Brian Jacques**

As Mark began to come to, he thought he saw fuzzy creatures standing around him. His vision was still blurry, so he couldn't really make out what exactly they were. He heard them speaking, so he relaxed and listened.

"What is it?"

"I don't know, but we'll find out soon enough. Everybody hush! He's coming around."  
"Wh-where am… I" asked Mark falteringly.

"What ho, laddie buck. You're in Redwall of course. Now it's my turn to ask the questions. What the bally blazes are you doing in Mossflower Wood falling out of trees and landin' on your bonce! And what are you, anyway?"

"Now, now, Field Marshal. Don't get yourself too worked up. He is still injured, so you shouldn't treat him disdainfully like that. So far, he has done us no harm." Mark's vision was beginning to clear, and he saw that the creature that just spoke was a mouse. Mark could see that he had some authority over the other creatures.

Mark still could not quite see what the one they called Field Marshal was. All he could see was two tall things sticking out of the creature's head.

"Excuse me, Field Marshal." Mark began speaking again after his head started to clear, "I'm sorry if I sound stupid, but what are _you_?"

"WHAT AM _I_! WHAT AM _I_! I'm a _hare!_ What did you flippin' think I was, a summer salad, wot!"

"Now, now," lectured the authoritative mouse. "I think it's time you leave, Field Marshal. You are becoming much too agitated.

The mouse with the authority was no shrimp. He escorted the hare out of the room with the hare fighting gamely on. When the two creatures left, a friendly looking squirrel knelt beside Mark's bed.

"You shouldn't worry about old Field Marshal there. He really is nice, but ever since he spent several seasons with the Long Patrol fighting vermin, he hasn't quite been the same. Nevertheless, he is a valuable asset to have in a war, or so I'm told. I'm not old enough to remember any wars. That mouse was Father Abbot Maximus. As you can see, his size fits his name perfectly. My name is Twighopper. What is yours?"

"My name is Mark. Am I in Redwall? I heard the Field Marshal mention Mossflower Wood."

"Why, yes you are! How did you know? And if you don't mind me asking, what are you?"

"I am called a human. Where I live, there are so many humans that they can't be counted. Where I live, Redwall is famous. People read about your heroes all the time! I love reading about Martin and Matthias."

"They have Redwall history books where you come from? Have you read about Rakkety Tam? He's my favorite."

"Yes I have. My favorite part was when he defeated Gulo the Savage in a duel."

"Yes, I like that part too. I have a question. Do youcome froma different world?"

"Well," Mark replied, "I don't really know, but I guess I do. My world is much different than yours. People have made machines that fly like birds, except much faster. They can carry people for hundreds of miles. Some of them are as big as this Abbey!"

"WOW! But what is a machine?"

"A machine is something that does work for us."

"Oh. What other machines do you have?" inquired Twighopper.

"We have machines that wash and dry our clothes for us, we have ovens that can cook food in just minutes, and we have machines that are on wheels that can carry us faster than anyone can run."

"This is great. I can't wait to tell my friends Riverfisher and Meadowgrass about this. They must meet you. Just yesterday I was wondering what it would be like if there were other worlds. They thought I was silly. Now I've proved them wrong!"

"I would like to meet them, but how did I come to be here?" asked Mark.

"Friar Mitch and Infirmary Keeper Ice were out with the Dibbuns on a foraging party. They found you under a tree with a giant bump on your head. They brought you back and Ice cared for your wounds. The Field Marshal was not happy to see you, but he's suspicious of everyone he sees that he hasn't met before. Do you know why Sister Ice is called Ice?"

"Is it because she puts ice on the Dibbuns' hurts?"

"No, silly," giggled Twighopper. "It's because she can freeze you with her stare. When the Dibbuns get in trouble, they always cover their eyes so they don't see Ice's stare!" laughed Twighopper.

"That's funny," said Mark. "Was there a book about the High Rhulain around where I fell?" he asked.

"Why, yes there was," replied Twighopper. "It's right here." Twighopper handed _High Rhulain_ to Mark.

"Thank you so much," thanked Mark as he opened the book. A ray of blue light shot out from the open book. Mark cried out in surprise and slammed the book shut.

"What was _that_!" exclaimed Mark.

"Haven't you ever read any magic books before? That must have been how you entered this world," replied Twighopper.

"Oh. Thank you. I really must be getting home. I've been gone for a while. Thank Sister Ice and Brother Mitch for helping me. I hope to return soon."

Mark opened the book again, but this time he kept it open. He saw an outline of a hand in the middle of the page, and he put his hand there. As the room started to fade away, he heard Twighopper say:

"Come back soon, Mark!"

Seconds later, Mark found himself lying where he had fallen. _High Rhulain_ was still in his hand.Surprisingly, his head did not hurt at all.

"Sister Ice must be a good doctor," he thought. "I wonder if David told anybody about my fall. I doubt it. He doesn't want to get in trouble. He probably locked himself in for the few hours I was gone. HEY! I was gone for a few hours! How come hardly any time has passed? That's really weird. Maybe it's like the Chronicles of Narnia and hardly any time passes here while I'm gone. I wonder how fast time passes there when I'm gone. I'll wait two days and then find out."

Mark got up and brushed himself off. He then went inside. He was hungry since it was almost lunchtime. After eating, he went into his room. He opened _High Rhulain_ to see if it still gave off the blue light. It did, and it still had the outline of a hand.

"I guess I get there the same way I leave," thought Mark, "but I wonder where I will end up."

Just then, David walked into Mark's bedroom.

"Hey dude, are you okay?" asked David.

Mark quickly closed the book and pretended to still be hurt.

"What do you think? You dropped me on my head," groaned Mark with his hands in his heads.

"Sorry, man," replied David. "Don't tell anybody, or I'll have to hurt you even more."

"Whatever, just get out," replied an annoyed Mark.

As David left the room, Mark breathed a sigh of relief.

"Whoa, that was a close one," said Mark. "I can't let _anybody_ know where I've been. I hope he didn't think that it was weird that I was up and walking around a few minutes after being knocked out. He might follow me around to find out how I got better. I can't let him found out about Redwall. That would be awful."

"That was weird. I could have sworn he got knocked out when he fell. He wouldn't come to and be able to walk into the house in just 10 minutes. Something strange must have happened. I'll have to watch Mark for the next few days. I'm gonna find out what his secret is…


	4. Chapter 4

A/N: Sorry that the story has been developing a little slow, but hopefully it will start to get exciting soon.

**Thanks for the reviews: daevilBEAN, Xenosagi, Elven Bunny, and Butterfly Lion**

**Please read and review!**

The next morning, Mark woke up full of vigor and ready to go back to Redwall. He hurried through breakfast, and he was about to lock himself in his room when his mom stopped him.

"Mark," she said. "I want you to mow the lawn."

"What? Why can't David do it?" Mark complained.

"Because I want _you _to do it, that's why," she replied.

"Fine," Mark said with frustration.

Mark knew that if he rushed through the chore and missed some spots, his mom would make him do it again. Mark did the job, but he grumbled and muttered dark things while he mowed the lawn.

An hour later, when he was almost done, Mark thought, "I know this is paranoid, but I hope David didn't go looking for _High Rhulain_, I left it there on my bed in the open."

Mark finished mowing the lawn and rushed into the house. Luckily, as he came in, he saw David sitting at his computer, concentrating hard on what he was doing. Mark breathed a sigh of relief.

"Phew, that was a close one," Mark though. "And now: on to Redwall!"

Mark went into his bedroom and locked the door behind him. He then sat down on his bed and opened _High Rhulain_. After muttering a quick prayer for good luck, he took a deep breath and put his hand on the open page. He felt a rush of excitement come over him as his bedroom began to fade and a large room with tables set up around him start to fade in. There was nobeast in the room, so Mark walked around, trying to find somebeast. Luckily, the first creature he saw was one he had already met: Abbot Maximus.

"Hello, Father Abbot," greeted Mark cordially.

"Well, hello. It's nice to see that you are back and you haven't suffered any ill effects from your fall. I'm sorry, but I didn't catch your name last time you were here," replied Abbot Maximus.

"My name is Mark. It's a pleasure to actually meet you."

"No, the pleasure is all mine," responded Maximus. "I overheard you speaking with Twighopper last time you were here. Do they really have Redwall history books there?"

"Yes they do, and young and old people alike actually _like_ to read them. I love them. I have read about such famous Redwallers as Martin and Matthias."

"Ah, I remember reading those books when I was hardly more than a Dibbun. Of course, I hated reading them then, but now I love them. I beg your pardon for sounding uneducated, but what species are you?" queried Abbot Maximus.

"I am called a human. Where, I come from, there are so many humans they can't be counted. We also have squirrels and mices and other woodland creatures, but they are much smaller."

"That is fascinating!" exclaimed Maximus. "Would you join us for the evening meal? I'm sure that there are other Redwallers who would love to hear about your world."

"I would love to," replied Mark.

"Great! I'm going to send you up to Sister Ice and she is going to get you a habit to wear and show you where you can wash. I would hurry though, because the Dibbuns will come in soon needing a wash, and that will be quite an adventure. It always is," warned Maximus.

"Thank you so much, Maximus. I just love being here at you Abbey."

"Don't we all," replied Maximus. "Sister Ice is upstairs in the first room on the left."

"Thank you," said Mark. Mark hurried to get cleaned up and dressed for the evening meal. He couldn't wait for the evening meal so he could tell others about his world. Of course, he couldn't wait for the famous Redwall fare either.

Sister Ice was very polite and gave him a habit that would fit and showed him where he could change and wash. He had just finished washing when a rowdy herd a Dibbuns was shepherded in by Twighopper and Meadowgrass.

"Mark! You're here!" yelled Twighopper over the roar of the Dibbuns, but her attempt to be heard was futile. The Dibbuns had swarmed around Mark, and all of the Dibbuns were asking Mark questions at the same time.

"You need to quiet down!" screamed Mark. The Dibbuns immediately quieted down, and some of them had an expectant look on their faces as if they were ready for a story. "I will tell you all about myself and where I come from at dinner tonight, so I suggest that you get washed quickly so you can come down for the evening meal."

The Dibbuns immediately started fighting over who would be first in line, so Mark said to them, "If you don't form a straight line and wait patiently for your turn right now, I won't tell any stories at all tonight.

Immediately the pandemonium ceased. Mark then turned to Twighopper.

"Sorry Mark, can't talk now. I still have to watch these naughty Dibbuns, but I'm looking forward to your stories tonight," Twighopper said.

Mark smiled and headed down the stairs. Abbot Maximus greeted him again and escorted Mark to the seat of honor, often occupied by the Abbot.

"I can't sit here," Mark said. "It just wouldn't feel right. I'd rather sit near the Dibbuns. They're fascinated with me because I'm different than them, but they seem to obey me a little bit more than they normally do."

"Really? I hope you can perform a radical change in them. These Dibbuns are even rowdier than I was at their age."

Mark had a great time that night. He had never seen so much food or tasted food that was so good. There was 7 kinds of bread, 4 kinds of cheese, mountains of summer salad, 2 fruit trifles, a fruit cake, gooseberry tarts, and countless other things to eat. There was October ale, strawberry cordial, cold mint tea, and a cask of blackberry wine for the elders.

When the meal was over, Abbot Maximus stood up to say something. "Friends, as you well know, we have someone new here today. I know you are eager to hear about him, his life, and his world. I will now let him tell you all about himself." The Abbot nodded towards Mark.

"First of all, for those of you that don't know, my name is Mark. All of my kind are called humans. I would like to thank all of you for your hospitality and for taking me into the Abbey and caring for my injuries when I first came here. I will now try to explain how I got here." Mark paused to take a breath.

"In my world, we have Redwall history books. Many people read them. I was reading about the High Rhulain in the woods near my house in a tree. I have an older brother who is not very nice and he doesn't like the books I read. He tried to take _High_ _Rhulain_ from me, but I held on. Unfortunately, my balance was not very good. I fell out of the tree and landed on my head. I woke up in the infirmary. I'm not really sure how.

"Now, I can get back to my home using that book." Mark reached under the table and pulled out _High Rhulain_. He opened it, and the blue beam of light shot out. A collective gasp and exclamations of wonder came from the audience.

"There is an outline of a human hand here on this page. If I put my hand there, I will go back to my world. I do not know how. That is how I got here, now I'm going to tell you about my world. There are many things there that you have never heard of.

"We can pick up something, talk into it, and people that are farther away than Salamandastron can hear us. People have invented things that fly like birds, except much faster, and they can take people around all over the world. We have something that is almost like a closet that can keep our food cold, and then we can put the food into a box a heat it back up."

Mark told the Redwallers many more wondrous things that night. Some people almost fainted with surprise when he tried to explain the space shuttle. After a little while, the Dibbuns were ushered into bed, and the meal began to break up, with the exception of the Field Marshal. He was still going strong.

Mark went up on top of the wall with Maximus and Methuselah.

"Mark, you handled all those questions magnificently. But truthfully, are those things really real?" asked Methuselah.

"Yes they are," replied Mark. Maximus and Methuselah were facing inside the Abbey grounds, but Mark was facing out. Mark immediately saw a large band of vermin outside.

"Maximus, Methuselah," whispered Mark through clenched teeth, "don't turn around, just trust me. There is a large band of vermin outside the Abbey. Get inside the grounds and get everyone inside. Don't let anyone outside at _all_. I'm going to try and talk with them." They silently obeyed.

Mark called out boldly, "Who are you and why are you here?"

Silece reigned in the vermin horde. Except for one fat and stupid-looking ferret.

"We're gonna crush you!" he exlaimed doofusly.

"Oh really?" came the reply from Mark.

"Yeah, something that looks like you said he was gonna bring us some super weapons so we can kill you!"

Mark inwardly cursed his brother for doing this. He heard another vermin kicking the fat ferret for having loose lips. Mark ducked beneath the battlements and slithered to the wall steps. He then broke into a dead run. He met Abbot Maximus on his way inside.

"Father Abbot," Mark said nervously," we need to get the elders together. We're going to have a council of war."


	5. Chapter 5

**A/N Thanks for the reviews: daevilBEAN, Xenosagi, Elven Bunny and Butterfly Lion. Please R&R! hope you like it**

As Father Abbot got the elders together, Mark pondered what he should do. He knew that his brother had done this, but should he fight back? He knew fighting back would be disastrous, but all the Redwallers would die if they didn't fight back. Mark guessed that David was going to try to bring guns to defeat the Redwallers. David had formally been in the army, and he had connections with the black market. He could get guns easily, and money was not a problem. David had made some good money with the black market.

Mark knew more about modern warfare than David thought. In fact, Mark knew a _whole_ lot about modern warfare. Mark felt confident in his ability to lead the Redwallers to battle, but they were not ready. They had no knowledge of guns. Mark could train them, but who knows how long it would take? Mark was comforted by the fact that the vermin had no knowledge of war, either. David was too smart to lead an inexperienced army into battle. Or was he?

Mark had hacked into David's black market accounts long ago, just in case he needed to know these things. Mark could get the Redwallers weapons if they decided to fight.

Mark would bring up all of these points when he met with the elders. He dreaded that meeting, fearing that some of the elders might blame the situation on him. In a way, it was his fault.

Just then, Abbot Maximus led a group of creatures into the room. Some of them, Mark knew; some of them he didn't know. Abbot Maximus was the first to speak.

"I'm going to start out with some introductions. Mark, you already know Sister Ice, Methuselah, the Field Marshal, and I, and this is Cellarhog Jed, Skipper of Otters, Rula the Badgermum, and Squirrelqueen Alice, direct descendant of Lady Amber. Elders, this is Mark. I will let his describe the situation to you."

**(I don't actually know if Lady Amber had any children, but I'm pretending she did.)**

"As you probably gathered from the Father here, we are surrounded by a vermin horde numbered somewhere between 300 and 400. I have a brother, and I am ashamed to admit he is not very nice. I don't know if I would call him evil, but he has definitely cast his lot in with an evil bunch. He is going to return to my world and bring back new weapons called guns. They are made of metal and shoot out other little pieces of metal, called bullets, in a small explosion so fast that you can't even see the bullets. You can easily die from a bullet wound."

Mark continued on making his points and looking at the elders' reaction. He noticed that they were anxious when he told them about the new weapons. When he finished making his points, Mark told them what he thought were logical options of what to do.

"The way I see it, there are three options: We could fight back and many of us would die and there is absolutely no assurance of victory, we could surrender and we would most likely be made into slaves or all killed, or we could move somewhere else and hope that the vermin led by my brother don't find us."

Mark stopped talking to let what he just said sink in. At first there was silence, but then all the elders immediately broke out in an argument over what they should do. The Abbot quickly silenced them.

"Quiet!" he shouted. "We need to do this in an orderly fashion. Skipper, you go first. Then we'll go in a circle around the table."

Skipper jumped up and vehemently exclaimed, "Redwall has survived many vermin threats in its rich history. Why should we back down now? I say we fight!"

"Okay, now it's your turn, Alice," said the Abbot.

"I agree with Skipper," Alice said reluctantly. "I don't want innocent Redwallers to die, but we can't let these vermin conquer us."

Rula Badgermum was the next to speak. "How _dare_ these vermin come and try to conquer us. I will fight, even if the rest of you don't!" Mark wondered if he actually saw that tinge of pink in Rula's eyes then or not.

"I don't know, it sounds pretty risky, but I think we have to fight back," said Cellarhog Jed.

Methuselah seemed unnaturally agitated. "Our forefathers fought hard to establish this haven of peace, and I'm not going to let these vermin take it away from us. We will destroy them!"

"There's no doubt about what we should do, wot! We can't just let those cheeky blighters march right in and frighten us out of our bally fur! We will fight!" said the experienced hare.

The Father then coolly replied, "It's unanimous. We will fight back."

Mark then said, "I will now go back and see what kind of weapons David is getting. I will formulate a battle plan. When I come back, I will gladly accept fighting suggestions. Hopefully my brother won't start battle right away. That way I can train you. How many able-bodied creatures do we have here?"

"About a hundred," replied the Abbot.

"Okay, I'll get weapons for a hundred. I will be back probably in the morning to see how things are going with these vermin."

As Mark left the room to go back home, Abbot Maximus confronted Methuselah. "I have never seen you so agitate before, friend."

"Yes, I know. War is a terrible thing. It is a shame that war has to touch here."

**Now for a flashback.**

David watched as his mom told Mark to mow the lawn. He was very glad that _he_ didn't have to mow the lawn.

"Now's my chance. I'm going to look through his room and try and figure out what is going on," David thought.

David looked through Mark's room, but he didn't really know what he was looking for. After a few minutes, David got bored and sat down on Mark's bed. He noticed _High Rhulain_ laying on the bed.

"This is that book he's been reading. I wonder if it's any good." David opened the book to read it, but instead he saw the blue light and the outline of a hand.

"Whoa! I wonder what this does. Maybe this healed Mark or something. I'm going to try it out." Mark's room began to fade away. "This is kinda weird..."

Mark's room continued to fade away, and trees and a stream began to appear. As soon as the wood became all real, David immediately took stock of his situation. He noticed that there was some fruit trees growing nearby. He also saw footprints that he couldn't identify. Some of the prints looked like rat prints, but they were very large. As he was pondering this absurdity, he was caught and tied up in the blink of an eye. Before he even knew what was going on, he was being dragged along by some creatures that he could not see because his face was on the ground most of the time.

When he finally came to a stop, he was in front of a large fire. He noticed many animals around him, but one stepped in front of him to speak. He looked like a ferret, but he was much too large. His face was painted with purple and green war paint.

"Who are you, what are you, and what are you doing here!" demanded the ferret.

"You've got no right to yell at me like that, punk," replied David.

David was immediately whipped from behind by a rat.

"That was for not answering the general's question and referring to him as a 'punk.' Even though I don't know what that means, I bet it isn't nice," squeaked the rat, who was quite scrawny.

"You wanna untie me and try that again?" taunted David.

As the rat raised the whip again to hit David, the general moved like chained lightning to catch the rat's arm before the whip fell.

"No more whipping, at least not yet. This thing has guts. Now," directing his attention to David, "who are you?"

"I'm David. Wh-"

"Shut up!" interrupted the general. "I'm asking the questions now. How did you get here?"

"I don't really know," replied David, "but I'm g-"

The general leapt over and dealt David a hefty blow to the side of his head. "Didn't I just tell you to shut up? Are you deaf? Are you stupid? I'll let you ask questions in a minute, but that minute has not arrived yet. Now, last question: What are you doing here?"

David answered, "I'm gonna make you pay for that when I'm untied, but I'll still answer your question. My younger brother, Mark, has been disappearing lately, so I'm trying to find our what he's been doing. I found this book that apparently has a portal to this world. Can I ask some questions now?"

"Sure, go ahead," replied the general.

"What's your name and who is this mob following you?"

"My name is General Fangbeard. These creatures are my followers. Together we make up the Southern Horde. Anything else?"

"Yeah. Where am I?" asked David.

"You're in Mossflower Woods, of course," replied Fangbeard.

"Mossflower Woods, huh? That's were Redwall is, right?"

"Yes, why?"

"My brother might be there. They're just a bunch of farmers, why don't we take Redwall? My brother's just a stupid idiot, and it would be freakin' awesome if I could get at him like that."

"Haven't you heard the stories about Redwall? Dozens of hordes with more vermin than mine and with craftier leaders than me have failed in their attempt to take Redwall. What makes you so sure that _we_ could do it?"

"I can't get us special weapons, and they won't be able to do anything about our super weapons," David said.

"Ha!" laughed Fangbeard. "That's what you think. You couldn't get us any '_super weapons_.' You're just imagining things. Besides, I'm the leader around here, and I get to decide what we do. Even so, let's take a vote. Horde, should we take Redwall?"

There was a deafening roar of disapproval, and Fangbeard turned to face David. "You see? The vote is 300 to 1. What are you going to do?"

Fangbeard turned around and started to walk away. That was when David made his move. He moved with quickness that Fangbeard would have envied. He leaped over to the squeaky rat, whose name was Scumtail, and took his whip and knife. He then struck out with the whip, wrapping it around Fangbeard's neck.

"You should have listened to my advice, Fangbeard, because you would still be alive and in two seasons you would be ruling Redwall. But that doesn't matter, because I can lead in your place."

With that, David slit Fangbeard's throat.


End file.
